A delivery man receives a payment from an online buyer in this file photo. Five local ecommerce operators in Vietnam have pledged to stop fake products from their platforms - PHOTO: THANH HOA

HCMC – Five major ecommerce operators in Vietnam---Adayroi.com, Lazada.vn, Sendo.vn, Shopee.vn and Tiki.vn---on April 18 signed an agreement pledging to remove fake goods from their ecommerce platforms, reported the local media.

By clinching the deal, the five operators want to demonstrate their responsibility and strong determination in joining the fight against the sale of fake products; committing to sell high-quality products with clear origins; not cooperating with individuals who take advantage of ecommerce websites to sell counterfeit items that violate intellectual property rights; and protecting consumer rights.

The signing ceremony was part of a training conference on protecting consumer rights in the ecommerce sector, co-organized by the Ecommerce and Digital Economy Agency and Vietnam Competition Authority, under the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Addressing the conference, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Dang Hoang An said that the local ecommerce sector was emerging, with average annual growth of 25%-30%. Last year alone saw the growth rate hitting 30%, with total retail revenue exceeding US$8 billion.

Apart from the strong growth, sales of a large number of fake products that violate intellectual property rights remain rampant on online shops, and these violations show increasingly sophisticated development, according to An.

Ecommerce platforms have hosted many individuals who trade fake or banned items, losing the trust of consumers, said Tran Huu Linh, head of the Vietnam Directorate of Market Surveillance.

The Government and relevant agencies have actively adopted many measures to detect and prevent the sale of fake products over the years.

Since 2015, the competent agencies have handled over 1.2 million violation cases, imposing fines on the offenders of up to VND92 trillion.

According to the market surveillance directorate, low-quality and fake products are mainly cosmetics, supplements, liquor and firecrackers.

The ministry is mapping out plans to prevent and fight against smuggling and unlicensed sales on ecommerce platforms.

At the meeting, attendees also presented obstacles encountered in the fight against fake products and trade fraud on the internet; the experiences of some major ecommerce operators in minimizing the sale of fake items; and orientations to eliminate the presence of fake items on social media platforms, such as Facebook and Twitter.